Blindsided
by Deliwiel
Summary: Just a regular day in the life of John Reese and Harold Finch, full of helping their most recent number and getting caught in explosions. Of course that's normal for them! Takes place sometime early Season 2
1. Chapter 1

_**Oh man, I keep forgetting to do this. POI has complete ownership of these characters, I stake no claim to them whatsoever...**_

"Mr. Reese?" Finch's voice came over the earpiece.

"Kinda busy, Harold," he muttered as he worked on getting the back doors of the van open. They refused to budge, and as he looked in the window, not only did he see the disheveled face of their latest number, but he saw the bomb sitting behind her, with only thirty seconds left on the timer. He quickly evaluated his options, glancing around to see if there was anything he could use to break the window. Seeing nothing, he sighed to himself, covered his face, and rammed his elbow into the window. The first hit sent spiderweb cracks through the glass; the second shattered the window. He reached his long arm inside and felt around until he finally found the handle, and to the side of it, the lock. He popped the lock and quickly opened the door, jumping inside and rushing over to their number as fast as he could.

He flipped open a knife and sliced through the bindings like butter. "Get out of here!" he said urgently. She didn't need to be told twice. Reese looked at the bomb, wondering if he could possibly find a way to stop it from going off. The blinking 10 on the clock face made a compelling argument against that course of action. He jumped from the back of the van and ran, trying to catch up to the fleeing victim.

"Mr. Reese, what's going on? Were you able to disarm the bomb?"

"No, there was no time. I got Kelsey out of there, but-" There was a loud explosion before he could say anything further. Both Reese and the number were far enough away that they avoided the immediate explosion, but the force of it still threw both of them into the air.

"Mr. Reese? Mr. Reese, can you hear me? John!"

 _ **Hey guys! Sorry, I know this is beyond short, I just thought I'd give a little taste and see what people think. This story is complete, I just need to upload the rest of the chapters, which will probably happen within the next two days.**_

 _ **Lemme know what you guys think!**_


	2. Chapter 2

2.5 hours earlier.

"Morning Finch," Reese said in his quiet voice as he strode into the library holding a cup of coffee.

"Good morning, Mr. Reese," came his friend's reply.

"New number?" John asked as he walked over to the piece of glass they always worked off of, seeing the picture of a young brunette woman taped in the middle.

"Yes, Kelsey Borwick. Young, single, and successful. She's a personal financial advisor for several companies. She advises companies on how to invest their money in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and she also deals loosely with taxes and tax savings"

"So basically what you're saying is based on what she's told her clients to invest in recently, we could potentially have a very large list of clients?" John clarified.

"Correct. I've done some digging though, and I think I've found our perpetrator." He handed John a folder. Reese opened it and started flipping through the files. "Rose-Gold Land Development," Finch continued as John finished skimming the papers. "She advised them to invest in a fairly new company that dealt with new construction equipment, which proved to be faulty. One of their men was killed while he was overseeing a test drive of one of the pieces of equipment. During the test, the equipment malfunctioned and blew up. It was quite big on the news," he added as he looked at John, who nodded his head.

"I remember that. It was just a few weeks ago. Wouldn't they just sue her for everything she's worth? Why go to the lengths of killing her?"

"It might have to do with the fact that it was the CEO of Rose-Gold Development's nephew who was killed in the explosion," Finch replied sadly. John nodded in understanding. That could definitely drive someone to kill. Finch continued speaking. "I need you to shadow Ms. Borwick for the next little while, find out what her schedule is like. We need to make sure we're there with her before anyone has a chance to make an attempt on her life."

"How am I supposed to find out her schedule, Finch? I can't exactly just waltz into her office and take a look at her computer."

 _1 hour later_

"John Machonis," Reese introduced himself as he smiled and held out his hand.

"Well, Mr. Machonis, I'm very glad you contacted my firm," Kelsey Borwick replied warmly, shaking the offered hand. "We are always happy to help anyone who needs to know what to invest in." She led him into her office and shut the door, sitting behind her desk and motioning for John to take a seat as well. "Now tell me: what exactly are you looking for?" John sat forward, clearing his throat.

"My employer is always on the hunt for new technology; something that could become the next Google or iPhone. We were hoping to you had some idea of what to look into?" She beamed.

"I have just the thing for you!" She stood up and retrieved a file from the filing cabinet and sat back down, handing it to John. "Excelsior is a small company that specializes in electronic chips of any kind. SD cards, SIM cards, microchips, tracking chips, you name it!" She continued explaining why investing in this company would be beneficial for both him and his employer, and John tried his best to look interested.

He was relieved when her phone rang. "Excuse me," she apologized as she picked up the phone off the cradle. "This is Kelsey." She listened for a moment before looking extremely confused. "All right, I'll be right there." She hung up and looked at John. "I'm very sorry. I'll be back in a few minutes. There's something going on downstairs that I need to take care of." John inclined his head and she hurried out the door.

He waited a few moments to make sure she was gone before he stood up and walked over to the other side of the desk. He called Finch as he was waiting for her calendar to load.

"Mr. Reese?"

"Thanks for getting her out of the office, Finch," John said as he scanned her plans for the next few days.

"Mr. Reese, I don't know what you're talking about?"

"You just called into the office, didn't you? About something she needed to take care of?"

"Mr. Reese, I have not made any such calls." John stopped, lifting his gaze from her computer with confusion written all over his face. "Where is Ms. Borwick now, John?" Reese looked out the door, a sinking feeling in his gut. He hurried out of the office, glancing frantically around. He hurried over to one of the interns.

"Where'd Kelsey Borwick go?" he asked urgently.

"Uh, she went that way," he pointed over towards the elevator. John saw the light above it indicating she was already at the ground level. He hurried for the stairwell, knowing he could get down four flights of stairs faster than the elevator would be able to come back up and then go back down.

He opened the door to the main floor and quickly scanned for Kelsey. He relaxed slightly when he saw her just outside the front doors, but he became decidedly less-relaxed when he saw her arguing with a man quite heatedly. He walked towards the door as quickly as he could without drawing unneeded attention to himself, but paused when he saw her shake her head and turn around to come back inside. John was about to breathe a sigh of relief, but stopped when the man she had been arguing with grabbed her roughly by the arm right as a white van pulled up behind them.

John, no longer caring about unneeded attention sprinted for the doors, but he was too late. He watched with despair and anger as Kelsey was shoved in the back of the van, which peeled away from the curb just as he burst through the front door. "Finch, take this plate number down: Alpha Echo Bravo 7215." John shook his head, berating himself for letting them take her so easily. A few moments passed, then Finch came on over the line.

"Alright Mr. Reese, I have the registration pulled up, but it looks like it was reported stolen yesterday. There won't be any helpful information that we can get from this, I'm afraid. What happened?" John pinched the bridge of his nose.

"They got her, Finch. They got her."


	3. Chapter 3

"Finch, there's gotta be some way you can find out where the van is going, isn't there?" John asked desperately as he walked briskly down the street.

"Yes, I am currently having the traffic cams scan for the plate. Once we get a hit we should be able to follow it. I have also alerted Detectives Carter and Fusco, who have issued a BOLO for a white van with those plates."

"Good," John commented somewhat absentmindedly, still upset with himself. Harold seemed to sense this.

"Mr. Reese, this isn't your fault," he told him gently.

"I should have paid better attention, Finch," John shot back. "I should have run faster, chased after the van longer, something!"

"Mr. Reese, the world is full of people who continually say 'I should have done this,' or 'I should have done that,' while they change absolutely nothing about themselves or their lifestyles that could facilitate a difference in their lives that they would like to see happen. You are not one of those people, Mr. Reese. You are doing something good with your life, you _are_ making a difference. Even if there was something you could have done, it's past now. The only thing you can change now is learning from this mistake and applying what you learn to future situations."

"And what if I don't, Finch?" John asked quietly. "What if I mess up again and I can't save her?" Finch didn't reply; he knew he had nothing to say that would make John feel any better. He also knew John was thinking about Jessica, how he failed to save her, though John didn't know Finch knew about that.

There was silence for several minutes before John finally asked, "Got anything from the traffic cams yet, Finch?"

"Unfortunately not...I'll let you know as soon as there is anything."

"Thanks, Finch." John continued walking down the street as he waited for any news on the van. He didn't have to wait much longer before his phone started ringing. He looked at the caller ID before he answered.

"Hello, Detective," he greeted.

"Hey John," Carter's voice came over the other end. "Got a hit on that white van BOLO. You ready?"

"Tell me," John replied with an urgency in his voice that wasn't lost on the detective.

"Okay, someone reported that they saw it in a parking lot at the corner of 66th and 72nd Street," she informed him. He glanced at the street signs around him.

"Okay, I'm only a few blocks away. Thank you, Detective," he added with sincerity in his voice.

"No problem. Let me know if you need anything else." The call was disconnected and Reese immediately called Finch.

"Finch, I just heard from Carter. They found the van."

"I heard, Mr. Reese, loud and clear. I assume you're en route?"

"Be there in a few minutes," John promised.

"Got eyes on the van," John muttered as he walked into the parking lot. The parking lot itself had other cars in it, but none immediately surrounding the white vehicle.

"Do you see Kelsey?" Finch asked in a worried tone.

"Not yet. There's no one around the van either." Something felt off to John, but he kept that to himself as he slowly made his way towards the seemingly-abandoned vehicle. He held his gun at his side, ready to raise it at a moment's notice.

He saw no one when he looked in the driver's side window, but he heard movement coming from the back. He hurried around to the rear of the vehicle and peered in the back windows, trying to see inside. What he saw made his blood run cold.

Kelsey Borwick was indeed in the back of the vehicle. Her hands were strung above her head, secured to a hook in the roof of the car; she also had a gag in her mouth. If it had just been that, John wouldn't have been so worried. However, what gave him the sinking feeling in his gut was the sight of an IED sitting right behind Kelsey, with just over a minute left on the clock.

"Finch, we've got a problem. They've got Kelsey locked in the van with a bomb." He tuned out Finch's exclamation of surprise and urgings for him to get himself and Kelsey out of there as quickly as possible, focusing instead on finding a way inside the van.

Kelsey saw him through the window, and though she looked slightly confused about why her latest client was standing outside her place of captivity, she didn't waste a moment in crying out through the gag for help. John tried to open the doors, but as he figured, they were locked. He hurried back to the front and tried both the driver and the passenger side doors; they were both locked as well. He went back to the back doors, trying to figure out the best course of action.

 _ **Hey guys! Sorry, I know it's short again, this story is a shorter one than my previous POI by a long shot.**_

 _ **I had a lot of struggles and issues with this chapter, so I'm not sure how I feel about it...**_

 _ **Lemme know what you think! Or not, as long as you enjoy it I don't care what you do :)**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Ok, last chapter! See my AN at the bottom :) (PS if this is confusing, this is where Chapter 1 left off...)**_

 _Present time_

John coughed as he rushed back to consciousness, trying to clear his lungs of the smoke. Everything he could hear was muffled, but something else was wrong. He tried opening his eyes to take in his surroundings, but he realized his eyes _were_ open, and he couldn't see a thing. "Finch?" he asked quietly, coughing again.

"Oh, thank goodness. I heard the explosion and when you didn't answer, I feared you hadn't gotten far enough away in time. How is Kelsey?" John listened, trying to pick out any sound he could that would tell him where their number was.

"Ms. Borwick? Kelsey?" John asked as he got to his hands and knees, crawling around and trying to feel anything that would help him her. He heard a cough off to his left and his head snapped in that direction. He followed the sound, stopping when his hands hit what he assumed was her leg. "Kelsey?" he asked again.

"Who...who _are_ you?" she whimpered as she observed the man she knew as John Machonis feeling around on his hands and knees.

"Someone who cares about saving people," John answered.

"What's wrong? What happened to you?" she asked as she noticed his unmoving eyes.

"Mr. Reese, what does she mean? Did something happen to you? Are you injured?" Reese could hear genuine concern in Harold's voice. He knew once he told him what was wrong, Harold was not going to be happy.

"I can't see, but I'll be fine."

"What?!" Finch exclaimed.

"I'm so sorry!" Kelsey whispered. She started to cry, and John held out his hand, silently asking for help over to her. She grabbed his hand and led him over. Once he was by her side, they both stood up.

"Mr. Reese, 'fine' is a term one uses when you are in good health, in good physical condition. Blindness does not usually fall under that word's definition!" Finch berated.

"Honestly Harold," John said patiently. "It's not the first time this has happened. I'll be able to see again in a few days, maybe a week," he promised.

"Who are you talking to?" Kelsey asked in confusion as she looked up at him. He was a good head and a half taller than her, so she really had to crane her head to see his face.

"A friend," he replied.

"I'm almost to you, Mr. Reese. I've alerted the detectives as well, and they're currently on their way," Finch informed him.

"Finch, you don't need to come get me," John tried to protest.

"Mr. Reese, we are not having this argument. Stay where you are, I'm almost there." John sighed, and Kelsey looked around as she heard sirens screaming, getting closer and closer.

"You'll need to describe who took you," Reese told her. She nodded, then remembered he couldn't see the action.

"Yes, I know." John heard a car screech to a stop a few meters away and he turned towards the sound.

"Finch?"

"I'm here, Mr. Reese." He felt a pair of hands grab his elbow and forearm, leading him forward towards what John assumed was the car.

"Hey, Professor!" they heard Fusco call out.

"Detective, now is not the best time," Finch replied in a tired voice.

"What happened here?!"

"I believe you have a witness right there," Harold pointed out, motioning to the trembling financial advisor. "I also believe that she's in shock, and more than likely in need of more assistance than us right now."

"Wait, what happened to him?" Fusco pointed to John after noticing that Finch was guiding him.

"John?" Reese heard Carter's voice join the mix. "What happened?"

"Mr. Reese will be fine. I just need to get him out of here," Harold insisted. "Please just take care of Ms. Borwick," he implored. He helped John into the car, then hurried to the driver's side and drove off.

"Who ARE those people?!" Kelsey asked the two detectives as they led her to one of their squad cars and wrapped a blanket around her.

"Just two people trying to make the world a better place, one person at a time," Carter replied as she stared at the retreating Lincoln.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Fusco asked, getting down to business. Kelsey nodded and began describing the events that had taken place that day.

"Finch," Reese stated from the backseat.

"Yes, Mr. Reese?"

"From the parking lot where you picked me up, I'm pretty sure that the direction you're going is not the direction of the library," he pointed out.

"You're right, Mr. Reese. We are not going back to the Library yet. I want to get you checked out more thoroughly before we do anything else."

"The numbers aren't gonna stop, Harold," John commented quietly.

"You're probably right, but there isn't much you can do if you can't actually see who it is you're supposed to be protecting now, is there?"

"Finch, I told you I'm fine!"

"I will believe that when Dr. Madani has given you the 'all clear,' not before," Harold stated, the tone of his voice letting John know that he was leaving no room for argument. "I've already called ahead to him; he's expecting us, and he knows this needs to be kept under the radar," Finch continued. John said nothing as he felt the car roll to a stop, then heard Finch exit the vehicle.

He felt around for the handle and opened the door, unfolding his tall body from the slightly cramped backseat before Finch could get around to help him. He could practically feel Harold's annoyed stare, and he shrugged nonchalantly.

"I'm not an invalid, Harold," he said meekly.

"No, you're simply blind!"

"Like I said, it's not the first time it's happened!" John tried telling him again.

"And that's supposed to make me feel better? Head wounds are nothing to be trifled with, John." He grabbed John's elbow again and led him towards the door of the hospital.

"I really would like him to stay at least a few more hours for examination," Farouk Madani said as John stood up. The good doctor had given John a pair of darkened sunglasses, which Finch insisted he put on. As soon as he was on his own though, John swore to himself they were coming off.

"I'm afraid that's not an option, Dr. Madani," Finch answered. "But thank you very much for your time and discretion," he added. John simply gave a small smile and put his hand against the wall, feeling his way along until he reached the door. He strode out of the room, still acting like he was able to see. Finch hurried after his friend, all the while insisting that he at least use some sort of walking stick to aid him.

They exited the building and started walking towards Harold's car, still arguing. "I'm fine to get back to work, Finch!" John insisted. "At least let me do some sort of recon!"

"Mr. Reese, you heard what the doctor said! He said your vision could return anytime; from within a few hours up to a week! Until your sight returns, he wants you off your feet!" John sighed, and Finch could tell he was cooking up an argument, but Finch held up his hand as his phone started ringing. "Detective Carter," he said in greeting.

"Hey Finch. We got Kelsey's statement, and Fusco's getting a team ready right now to go bring in the owner of Rose-Gold Development. If he didn't order that hit, I'm a Disney Princess," she added.

"Thank you Detective. Please keep us updated on the situation."

"I will. How's John?" She asked. "What happened to him?"

"Mr. Reese is currently suffering from temporary blindness. He will be under house arrest until he regains his vision."

"Finch, you can't put me under house arrest!" John groused.

"Hey Finch," Carter said. "If he gives you any trouble, let me know. I'll deal with him." Harold chuckled.

"Thank you, Detective. We'll be in touch." He disconnected the call and turned to his visually impaired partner. "Mr. Reese, the detectives have taken Ms. Borwick's testimony, and they're going to bring in the owner of the Development company. Since they seem to have everything under control, will you please consent to go home for at least the rest of the day?" John wanted to argue, but after thinking about it for a minute, he realized he _was_ tired.

"Alright Finch, I'll do it. But just for the rest of the day," he added, holding up his index finger. "I'm going to be back in the Library first thing tomorrow morning."

"I'm sure I couldn't stop you if I tried, Mr. Reese. I'm going to take this small victory and drive you home now," Finch conceded. They walked towards the car and drove off towards Reese's apartment.

A few days later, Finch looked up as John walked through the gate of the Library. "Ah, Mr. Reese. How are you doing today?"

"Fine, Finch," John replied patiently. He knew his employer was simply concerned about him, but the fact that Harold asked him that every day was starting to wear a little thin. His vision had been gone for two days before it finally came back fully. The only thing left bothering John was a bout of vertigo every now and then.

He stopped and leaned against the wall as a wave of dizziness decided right then would be a good time to attack. He leaned against the wall for support, waving off Harold's question of whether he should go home or not. "I'm fine, Harold," he insisted as his friend walked over and helped him to a seat. "Vertigo is just another side effect of the head injury, unfortunately."

"Well please, for my sake just sit there for a little while. Watching you sway on your feet was making _me_ feel nauseous," Finch informed him. John gave a small smile and leaned back in the chair, closing his eyes and waiting for the dizzy spell to pass.

"Do we have any news on Ms. Borwick?" he asked, eyes still closed.

"Actually, we do. When they arrested Tom Kane, the CEO of Rose-Gold, it didn't take long before he admitted to the whole thing and gave up his accomplices who abducted her," Finch explained. "They've all been arrested and will be in jail for at least 10 years, if not more."

"Good," John replied in his quiet voice. A minute later, he got up and walked over to Finch's bookshelf.

"Mr. Reese, what on earth are you doing?" Finch asked in puzzlement.

"A bit of light reading, Harold," John replied, only sounding slightly sarcastic as he pulled out three books and stacked them on top of each other. "We got a new number. You wanna look it up or do I need to?" Finch sighed in resignation.

"Give me just a moment and I'll have the information pulled up," he agreed. Obviously the numbers would never stop coming, and he supposed now that John had his sight back, he was more than ready to get back to work.

That was the thing about John Reese, Finch thought to himself. As long as he was alive and breathing, he knew there were people out there he could be saving. He was never going to let someone down again as long as he could help it.

 _ **So there you have it...thoughts? Love it? Hate it? If it's the latter, please feel free to tell me, but make it constructive criticism so I can know how to improve my writing :)** **I told you guys that it was a lot shorter than my last one...I was going to have a lot more happen, but I couldn't figure out good reasons for what I was going to have happen, so I decided that this was a decent spot to end it. However, I wouldn't be opposed to writing a sequel if you guys want :) Let me know!**_


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